EngrAg21 said:
For background, I'm a 3rd gen Aggie, was in the Corps, involved in a lot of stuff on campus at A&M, and am far from a 2 percenter. And I'm so tired of midnight yell.
This recent social media blitz to me was the final straw. I feel bad for that 20 year old kid who is getting mocked and will have that online for life. Although it obviously comes with the territory, but unlike our football players he isn't getting paid thousands of dollars a year to do this. And to everyone who says "who cares what other people think" when we're the laughingstock of the internet, what other people think of you is called your reputation. Having a good reputation is important. People choose to come to A&M because it has a reputation as a good academic school with good values and good sports (sometimes). But recruits want to come to a school that has a reputation that makes them look good. Like it or not, your average recruit cares about their image a lot. School values and traditions aren't on the forefront of their minds. We need things that attract both a regular student body, and recruits.
For people who say that Yell Leaders need to go, you're missing the mark too. The Yell Leaders are a unique tradition that when done right actually adds to our environment. Sitting on the alumni side at the tu game and hearing the students do BTHO was awesome. What other school has that? And when the Yell Leaders aren't telling World War Two era jokes they actually shine at their job title, leading yells.
Midnight yell was cool when it was invented, but the term people keep saying about it, anachronistic, is accurate. The jokes are from the 1950s, and shockingly, people aren't entertained by that anymore. It comes out as hokey, lame, and easily mockable especially out of context. The name of the game today is hype. That's what the Power entrance before the football game is. That's what all those videos and photos that recruits love being made about them are. They're meant to build hype about a team and players.
Midnight Yell needs a revamp. I'm not sure what it would look like, but somehow keep this tradition, modernize it, and show that we can change with the times. Make it something that can get people excited for the game, and not result in viral moments of us looking like idiots.
